


Ant-Man and the Ghost

by silverskyfullofstars



Category: Ant-Man (Movies), Avengers: Endgame - Fandom, Avengers: Infinity War - Fandom, Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Avengers:Endgame theories, Clint Barton's Farm, Gen, NO AVENGERS ENDGAME SPOILERS, Post-Avengers: Infinity War Part 1 (Movie), cross-country drive, how Scott got to the compound, my ideas on how the time between the movies will go
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-12-14
Updated: 2019-04-28
Packaged: 2019-09-18 00:06:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,557
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16984353
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/silverskyfullofstars/pseuds/silverskyfullofstars
Summary: What happened in the time between the Snap and the events of Avengers: Endgame? How will all the players get to where they will be when the war resumes?Based on my theories and the Avengers: Endgame trailers.Previously titled "Avengers: Endgame LeadupsThis story is SPOILER-FREE





	1. Chapter 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I have a theory that Ava Starr's molecular disequilibrium could make her immune to the Snap, since you can't dust something incorporeal. That led me to thinking about how Scott got to the compound. 
> 
> Yeah, I know there are theories about him being Loki or a Skrull, but Scott Lang is a ray of sunshine on a team of angsty dramatic superheroes, and I need him to be himself for my own personal happiness.

When Janet didn’t come to bring her the quantum energy capsule within a half hour, Ava began to suspect that something was wrong. They were still in the early stages of figuring out how to sustain the treatment for her molecular disequilibrium, the biggest issue being the lack of data on how long she could go between quantum energy treatments. Since she’d lost the last capsule they brought her by accident, Ava was depending on their emergency quantum energy run to keep her from going intangible again.

 

She knew they had been testing the portable tunnel - maybe something went wrong? As she turned towards the window of the tiny San Francisco safehouse she was sharing with Dr. Foster, her powers gave a violent shudder. Her hands blinked in and out of existence, proving what Dr. Van Dyne had feared - too long between treatments, and she would begin to regress.

 

Suddenly, out of the corner of her eye, she saw something. A woman walking along the street outside crumbled to dust, her shopping bag falling to the pavement. Two young men blew away on the breeze from the San Francisco Bay, their joined hands the last to dissolve. A dog stopped barking, and three of the six pigeons on the power line across from her window disintegrated. She revised her statement - something had gone _very_ wrong.

 

“Ava?” Dr. Foster called from upstairs. “Ava, have you seen what’s on the -”

Ava rushed up the stairs to Dr. Foster’s office in time to see his legs dissolve out from under him, the reporter on the television a pile of ash on her chair.

“Ava, don’t worry,” he said as the decay crept up his torso. “You’re brave and you’re smart, you’ll find a way through. Get to Hank, get to Janet, find La-”

His mouth dissolved with the rest of his face, and the closest thing Ava Starr had to a father was a pile of dust on the floor.

“Oh, god.”

 

-

 

Ava rushed through what had been downtown traffic on a stolen motorcycle. After sweeping Dr. Foster’s remains into a jar, she had immediately left the house, intent on reaching Hank Pym’s lab. Vehicles like the one she had taken were abandoned all over the streets, ashy remains smeared on the seats. She couldn’t bring herself to take one of those - her motorcycle had been parked on the street, no owner (or dust pile) in sight.

 

The streets weren’t empty - not by any stretch. Those who hadn’t been dusted were rushing out, checking cars and making frantic phone calls. But the noises of the city were muted, as if through earplugs. Ava gritted her teeth, trying to keep her powers in check. _Just long enough to get to the lab, molecules_ , she thought. _Then you can be as incorporeal as you like_. She kept driving.

 

The lab was quiet when she got there. The main door was open, and the digital lock on the elevator let her through easily. Something was off, but it wasn’t until she got to the main lab level that it hit her - the ants weren’t working. They were skittering around the walls listlessly, and only about half of them were even visible. The dusting - it must have taken animals too. Ava made her way to the roof, skirting small piles she realized must be ant remains as she climbed the stairs. What she saw there was even worse than expected.

 

The roof was deserted, empty of people but with equipment still running. The quantum tunnel in the back of the van was running, but the data-gathering, control, and communication stations were deserted, a comm microphone dangling from a cord. Ava rushed over and grabbed the mic.

“Hello?” she asked. “Hello?” No answer. “Who’s down there? Is anyone listening?”

Then, a tinny, hollow voice. “Hello?”

“Scott? Scott Lang?”

“Yeah!” came a desperate shout. “Yeah, it’s Scott! Who’s here?”

“It’s Ava, the Ghost!” she called. “Can you tell me how to get you back up here?”

 

Luckily, Scott had been briefed on how to use the equipment in case something went wrong, so he was able to talk Ava through it without too much trouble.

“Ok. Press the lever now?”

“Yup. The big conspicuous one that screams old-sci-fi-movie.”

She pulled it. The tunnel glowed, and with a whirring blast of light, spit Scott Lang out onto the concrete.

“Aw, shit!” he said.

“Are… you ok?” she asked, uncertain whether or not she should help him up.

“Yeah, yeah, I’m fine.” He finally looked up, a panicked gleam in his eyes. “Listen, I know some people who can help with all this, but we gotta stop somewhere first.”

 

-

 

An hour later, the van was packed with the necessities for a cross-country drive, as well as Scott, Ava, and Scott’s daughter. They’d checked Scott’s former wife’s house, as well as his office, but there was no one there but Cassie. She appeared to be taking it well, considering her age, but Ava could see she was putting up a front for her father as much as Scott was putting one up for her. She was twisting her fingers in the hem of her shirt, fiddling with the zipper of her jacket, glancing to her left every so often, as if to make sure her father was still there. His knuckles were white where they gripped the steering wheel, and his jaw was clenched in anxiety, but he didn’t look away from the road. Too much was at stake to risk an accident.

Ava wasn’t doing much better herself, drumming her fingers on her suitcase in a mindless pattern. Scott had insisted on swinging by the safehouse after packing bags for him and Cassie.

“There must be something you want to take with you,” he had told her. “We might not be back for a while.”

She had decided on some clothes, toiletries, Dr. Foster's jar, and her Ghost suit, just in case the quantum energy capsule Scott brought back failed. She had also packed a box with some of her parents’ things. Dr. Foster had given it to her when she moved in with him. It wasn’t much - just a photo album, some jewelry, a few birthday and holiday cards from before the accident. Still, it didn’t feel right to leave it. She had looked around the room, wondering what else to take, finally settling on her laptop, phone, and necessary chargers. The shrunken lab had every piece of tech they could ever hope for, but there was no guarantee that they’d be able to grow it when they needed to. Better to be safe than sorry.

After a moment of decision, she’d slipped the Ghost suit on over a pair of leggings and a long-sleeved shirt - a casual enough outfit to wear in public without drawing attention, but comfortable under the armored suit. The helmet lay next to her on the backseat, taunting her with its dull red eyes.

“Dad?” Cassie asked. Her voice was quiet in the van, making it feel emptier somehow. “Where exactly are we going?”

Ava wondered the same thing. A glance at the GPS told her they were on I-80 East somewhere near Sacramento, speeding along the empty freeway, but she didn’t know much more.

“To find some friends,” Scott answered after a moment. “If anyone knows what’s going on, they do. I’d have gone to Hank or Dr. Foster first, but…” He trailed off, then resumed, breathing deeply. “We’re going to the Avengers Compound.”


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this took so long, guys! I've been trying to find time to write but it hasn't been going my way, so I'm posting this slightly shorter chapter now. Hopefully I can get more done once my spring break rolls around.

Their first stop, to Cassie’s great delight, was Lake Tahoe.

“Cassie’s grandparents have a condo in Kings Beach,” Scott explained. “They don’t live there year-round, and Maggie gave me the keys a while back and forgot about them. I normally wouldn’t abuse her trust like that, but I figure right now it’s worth the talking-to I’m gonna get.”

Ava noticed that he carefully didn’t mention where Cassie’s grandparents were now, or if he had been able to contact them. It was an unspoken rule that they didn’t talk about the unknown anymore.

 

When they pulled into a parking space in front of the condo, the lights were off. The door unlocked smoothly, but the click of the key was deafening without the background sounds of life. Inside the condo, it was chilly, the temperature a product of sitting empty for the past few months.

“Well, make yourselves at home,” Scott said as he moved the last of their bags inside. “There’s a room down here that Maggie’s parents usually use, and another three bedrooms upstairs. One bathroom on each floor. Nothing in the fridge now, but I brought some snacks in the car, and I’ll run to the grocery store and see what I can get.”

 

As he spoke, Ava looked around the space. Scott had just turned on the heater, so it was warming up, but it still felt empty somehow. There were tchotchkes on the bookshelves, and a remote left out on the coffee table, but it didn’t feel lived in. Even the warm yellow lighting didn’t take away from the residual shadow of fear.

 

Cassie chose a room first, claiming the top bunk in the room she usually slept in. It was as if she was on any other vacation, except that she herded her father towards the bottom bunk, evidently afraid to sleep alone. Ava couldn’t blame her. The tense feeling in the air was exactly the reason kids dragged well-loved stuffed animals to bed with them years after it was considered too young for them. Safety in numbers when something feels off.

 

Ava set her suitcase on the bed in the room next door. The small window looked off into the dark, showing nothing except the reflection of her face in the shining black. Scott had moved into the kitchen, and the clattering of cabinets and silverware was a comfort in the daunting silence. She left her Ghost suit on when she walked out into the main living space.

 

“Hey, Ava,” Scott, said, his voice muffled by the cabinet his head was jammed into. “Cassie wants spaghetti for dinner, you good with that?”

“Sure,” she said, a little listlessly.

“Hey.” He popped up from under the counter, his expression more serious than it had been earlier. “Stop worrying. We’re gonna find a way through this, and it’s gonna be fine. I’m Ant-Man, you’re the Ghost, and Cassie was a Girl Scout for five years. We even have spaghetti!”

Ava couldn’t help but smile at that.

 

-

 

By 8am the next morning, they were packed up and on the road again. They drove the whole day, stopping at empty rest stops for snacks and bathroom breaks. The hours dragged on. The road seemed endless. Cassie was excited when they stopped at an open McDonald’s for dinner, but was otherwise quiet.

 

In the silence, Ava focused. She had the quantum energy capsule Scott had been filling when the Dusting happened, but it wouldn’t last forever. She was using small amounts in the morning, just enough to get her through the drives. It made sleeping at night harder, but at least she wouldn’t phase through the car and onto the highway. She knew her calculations were correct, knew her rationing would work, knew she wouldn’t phase -  but she still focused. The stress was hard to keep at bay.

 

-

 

They’d been on the road for three days and two nights - one spent in Tahoe, the other in Salt Lake City. They hadn’t been driving for as long as they had the day before, but it was still a long way, and the sun was setting when Scott took an exit off the freeway somewhere in the monotone farmland of Iowa. The few houses turned into no houses, the paved road turned into dirt, and it was dark by the time he reached a gate that seemed to lead nowhere. He rolled down the window, punched a code into the machine next to the gate, and watched as the gate slid open soundlessly.

 

“Where are we going?” Ava asked as the car continued down the dirt road.

“A friend’s place,” said Scott. “I’m hoping there’ll be someone there to greet us.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Any guesses where they're going?


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know I'm posting this chapter after Endgame came out, but I can't see the film until May 11, so I won't be spoiling anything and I'd appreciate not being spoiled. I always planned to end this story once they reach the Avengers Compound, leaving it a little open-ended, and I still plan to do that. I'm going to continue writing as if my only resources are the Endgame trailers, so there will be NO SPOILERS.

The dirt road finally ended, winding its way up to a white-and-green house next to a large field. Scott parked the van in the driveway and unbuckled his seatbelt.

“Stay put for a minute, okay?” he said. “I’m gonna get out first, cause if he sees people he doesn’t recognize he might put an arrow somewhere you really don’t want it.”

Ava shivered. What kind of friend was this, who would shoot you on sight? Still, she trusted Scott, so she stayed seated, fingers tapping on the Ghost helmet next to her. She kept Cassie in her peripheral vision, so strong and yet so fragile in the seat behind her.

 

Scott walked up the driveway warily, on the lookout for any traps that might have been set for less friendly visitors. Surprisingly, he got all the way to the front porch before he was stopped by a voice.

“So, visitors. Should I take the chance of assuming you’re the real Scott Lang?”

The voice was rough, issuing from the shadow of a shabby-but-sturdy rocking chair that sat on the weathered porch. If Scott squinted, he thought he could make out the dark smudge of a bow and quiver. He took a deep breath, blowing the air out audibly.

“I’d hope so. I’m not nearly that interesting to impersonate. The only cool thing I’ve got is the Ant-Man suit, and Hank added so many fail-safes to make sure it wouldn’t get stolen after the whole thing… well, needless to say we’re a lot more careful with our equipment now. I don’t know if it’s even possible for a thief to use it properly.”

Scott knew he was rambling, but he also knew that if he wanted one of SHIELD’s best operatives to trust him, he’d be better off exposing the awkward characteristics that made him identifiable than trying to be cool and getting shot somewhere not-cool.

“So, I know it’s not the best time, but we’re trying to get to the Avengers Compound as soon as we possibly can, and we’re looking for a safe place to crash. Got any options?”

“We?” the man on the porch said, leaning forward into the light. “Who’s we?”

Clint Barton had changed since Scott had last seen him. His hair was longer on top than it had been the last time he’d seen him, and there was no purple on his suit anymore. He still had his bow and quiver sitting on the rocking chair, but the handle poking up over his shoulder looked like it belonged to a sword rather than any kind of long-range weapon. His boots were scuffed and dirty, and his eyes had a hollowness to them that Scott recognized. He had lost someone.

 

“My daughter,” Scott answered, “and a friend of ours.”

Clint’s scowl somehow deepened. “You brought your daughter into this, Lang?”

“Her mom and stepdad… dusted. I’m all she’s got, I’m not leaving her. I know you’ve got kids too, Barton, you get it, right?”

Clint came down the porch steps, weary and yet silent. “Yeah, I get it. But you’re wrong. I _had_ kids.”

 

-

 

Clint helped them bring their bags into the farmhouse after checking their van for any bugs, bombs, or other not-so-fun upgrades. He didn’t elaborate any more on what he’d said on the porch, but Scott noticed a distinct lack of other people in the farmhouse, even though Clint had told him about his wife and three kids during their time on the Raft. Scott didn’t ask.

 

Ava introduced herself to Clint quietly, holding out a hand it was taking more and more effort to keep solid. Cassie had no such qualms, introducing herself with eye contact and a firm handshake, almost as if Clint was interviewing her for a job. Something in his eyes seemed to soften when he saw her, and Ava wondered if the reason was the bin of children’s toys that lay abandoned by the sofa in the family room. Clint led them upstairs, hesitating next to a few closed doors before showing them to two guest rooms, correctly assuming that Cassie wanted to stick close to her dad.

 

Sometimes Ava wished she had someone she could stick close to. Dr. Foster had been the closest thing to a parent she’d had in years, but she was no longer a child who could run to a parent’s room in the dark, begging to be tucked in again. She hadn’t had that option since her mother died. SHIELD assets didn’t get tucked in, and by the time she met Dr. Foster, she was a little old for teddy bears and crawling into mom and dad’s bed when she was scared. He offered her guidance and mentorship, but she had to face the dark on her own.

 

Here, the dark was different than in the city. It was darker without the profusion of artificial lights that illuminated San Francisco’s streets, but the stars were brighter, and Ava could almost believe that someone or something up there was watching out for her - God, luck, whatever. She’d even take Thor if he was willing to tell her it would all be okay, maybe grant a few wishes her way. Lost in her thoughts, it took her a moment to realize that there was someone next to her. Her powers spasmed in surprise, and the glass of water she was holding dropped and shattered when her hand lost its corporeality.

 

“Shit!” she exclaimed quietly, jumping out of the way and almost stepping on Clint’s feet. “Sorry about the glass,” she said once she had caught her breath. “You surprised me.”

He smiled reassuringly, but it didn’t reach his eyes. “It’s fine. We’ve got more, the kids used to break them all the time…” He trailed off, tipping his head back to look at the stars.

“They’re so much brighter here,” she said in a valiant effort to break the silence. “We don’t get them like this in the city, not with all the lights. I kind of like our sunsets better, though.”

That got a real smile. “Yeah, the grass just doesn’t have the same effect as the ocean, does it? At the very least, I’m glad you found something to like here.”

He paused, then turned to face her, his expression serious and somber. “I… my clearance level was pretty high back when I was an active SHIELD operative. Scott explained a little, but I remember seeing your callsign in a few documents. I didn’t know what they were doing, and I just wanted to say sorry.”

 

Ava’s heart skipped at the mention of SHIELD, old memories and fears bubbling up just below the surface. “It’s okay,” she said. “I don’t think many people knew, and the ones who did probably wouldn’t have told you. After SHIELD fell, I looked into some of the documents, and a lot of my handlers turned out to be Hydra. I actually went after a few of them.”

“Bitter?”

“Yeah. It’s probably in the files, but I have a condition. Molecular disequilibrium means that sometimes my molecules become intangible. It’s why I dropped that glass, actually. I thought… SHIELD said they would help find a cure. They gave me the suit, which does help, but it wasn’t a cure. I was in so much pain back then, and I think I was looking for someone to take it out on.”

“Well, at least it was on some Hydra bastards. Coulda been worse, I guess.”

She laughed a bit at that. “It could be. Ironically, when I was fighting Scott and his friends, I was trying to take a cure by force, but they ended up finding a way for me to get it without killing anyone.”

 

Clint broke in with a question. “Sorry if this is insensitive, but why are you here now? You said you have a cure. You don’t have to be involved, you could get out of this life. Why stay?”

“I’m running out,” she said, her face betraying the resigned sadness of someone who knew their fate but still wished life could be different. “The rest of Scott’s team dusted mid-mission to get me more, so I’ve only got the one capsule. I’m trying to save it for when I need it most, and it’s making things a little tricky.”

He nodded. “You need the Avengers to help. Whether that’s by finding a new cure or by bringing everyone back.”

“Why do you talk about them like they’re separate?” she asked. “You’re Hawkeye. You’re still on the team.”

“Barely. I haven’t seen any of them since the Civil War except Natasha, the Black Widow. She checks in every so often, but she hasn’t been back in months. I’m kinda on my own here. Stuck. The house arrest cuff’s been off for a month and a half now, but I still haven’t left. Not sure why.”

 

“Does anyone know why they stay or leave?” she asked. Not to him. Just to the sky, to the porch lights, to the dark fields in front of them. They stood there for a while, wondering if anyone really knows. Does anyone really know anything?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You don't know how many times I accidentally typed Scoot instead of Scott and had to go back and fix it


End file.
